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MR. SPRAGUE'S SPEECH. 



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REMARKS 



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OF THE 



HON. PELEG S PRAGUE 

AT FANEUIL HALL, 

BEFORE THE CITIZENS OF BOSTON AND ITS VICINITY, 

UPON THE CHARACTER AND SERVICES OF 

GEN. WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON, 

OF OHIO, 

THE WHIG CANDIDATE FOR THE PRESIDENCY 

OF THE UNITED STATES. 



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Published by the Whig Republican Association of Boston, 



BOSTON: 

JOHN H. EASTBURN, PRINTER, 

No. 18 State Street. 

1839. 



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IN EiCCHAN^iJB 



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■•« -• « 1 1 



MR. SPRAGUE'S SPEECH. 



Mr. Spra.gue said that having been a Delegate to the Har- 
lisburg Convention he was called upon to give some account of 
the proceedings of that body. He should attempt only a plain 
statement, and, as he appeared somewhat in the character of a 
witness, it might not be improper to state his own position. 

I am, said Mr. S., no politician ; I cannot afford to take any 
political station. When I came to reside in this city, it was 
with a fixed determination to devote myself exclusively to the 
practice of my profession. I came to Massachusetts because it 
was the place of my birth, because here were my relations, my 
early friends, my dearest associations ; because the soil of Mas- 
sachusetts covered the bones of my ancestors for two centuries 
and I wished, in the fulness of time, to mingle my ashes with 
theirs. I adhered to the determination which I had formed, to 
take no part in politics, except what belongs to a private citizen 
who loves his country, until I was called upon, in a manner 
which I thought I could not resist, to attend tiie Harrisburg 
Convention. The pre-eminent Statesman of our own Com- 
monwealth having been withdrawn, — I went there the ardent 
friend of Henry Clay, revering his virtues, with the highest 
admiration for his genius, and the fullest confidence in his ex- 
S^ited, self-devoted patriotism. I carried with me, as I believed, 
your wishes for his elevation to the Chief Magistracy. I made 
your wishes fully known to others, but after a full and free 
interchange of views and opinions, the Convention has deemed 
it best to nominate General Harrison ; and I am convinced 
that their decision was the wisest that could have been made : 



although, under the influcncG of your and my own predilec- 
tions, I came to tiiat conclusion more slowly than a majority 
of my colleagues. 

What are the reasons on which this conviction rests ? The 
Convention was composed of gentlemen of the highest charac- 
ter for intelligence and virtue from all portions of our country. 
Twenty-two States were represented ; and it is believed that 
no assembly, since the organization of our government, has 
comprised more of talent, information and patriotism. The 
Delegates from Massachusetts sedulously exerted themselves 
to obtain full and correct information, not only by conversation 
with individuals from other States, but from each State Delega- 
tion as a body, upon their representative and official responsi- 
bility, as well as upon their personal honor. They ascertained, 
as they thought, that Mr. Clay in all probability could not get 
the votes of certain States without which no Whig candidate 
could rationally expect to be elected. To this conclusion they 
were brought reluctantly by evidence which they could not 
resist. 

As to the great State of New York with her 42 electoral 
votes — at least three fourths of her Delegates to the Conven- 
tion, and twenty out of twenty -one of her Representatives in 
Congress were of opinion that her electoral vote could not bo 
given to our favorite candidate ; and this representation was 
confirmed by at least as great a proportion of all others with 
whom we had opportunities to confer. 

The State of Ohio gives 21 and Indiana 9 electoral votes. It 
was the concurrent testimony of all that there was no fair pros- 
pect of Mr. Clay's obtaining either of those States ; while, on 
the other hand, the assurances were strong and uniform that 
General Harrison would undoubtedly carry them both. That 
he would take the vote of New York was the confident and 
undoubting belief of nearly all her Delegates, confirmed by 
every other source of information. Here then were 72 electo- 
ral votes which General Harrison could, and which, owing to 
transient causes, Mr. Clay could not now obtain ; and no assur- 
ance could be given us that his superior strength in the South 
or elsewhere would approach to a compensation for this loss 



Is the Whig party so strong that we can afford to dispense with 
72 electoral votes ? 

But this is not all — there is Pennsylvania. When at Phila- 
delphia I was first told that the Key-stone State might be 
carried for Harrison, I received the suggestion with incredu- 
lity. But subsequent information induces the belief that we 
may rationally indulge in sanguine expectations of such a 
result. Three fourths of her Delegation expressed that opinion 
and what we heard from all sources, after the nomination, 
strongly confirmed it. These hopes will not seem visionary 
when it is recollected that, in 1836, when Jacksonism was in its 
palmy state in Pennsylvania, with a triumphant majority of 
twenty thousand ; General Harrison — brought forward as he 
was, at a late day, with other Whig candidates in the field, and 
without expectation of general success, still came within about 
four thousand votes of carrying the State ; and it is to be fur- 
ther recollected that from the Convention which then put him 
in nomination, that distinguished gentleman, Thaddeus Stevens 
with several of his friends and associates seceded, carrying with 
them, as we were assurred from very high authority, from ten to 
fifteen thousand votes. Had Mr. Stevens and his friends then 
supported the nomination it would have been sustained by a tri- 
umphant majority. Will he support it now? I have it from his 
own mouth that he will ; and I was assured by distinguished in- 
dividuals after the nomination, and among them Ex-Governor 
Shultz, that we might expect the vote of Pennsylvania to be given 
for General Harrison by ten thousand majority. For Mr. Clay 
there was no rational hope in that State. Here, then, are 
thirty more electoral votes, making an aggregate of 102 in 
these four States alone, which, if reliance is to be placed on 
the judgment and representations of distinguished and honor- 
able men we may confidently expect will be given for the nom- 
inee of the Convention. This is the best testimony which the 
nature of the case admits, it is that which the Delegates from 
Massachusetts went to obtain, which they felt bound to receive, 
and which they could not disregard. 

General Harrison is now the only Whig candidate. There 
is now no question except between him and Mr. Van Buren, 



Has he the qualifications to discharge the duties of Chief Ma- 
gistrate and can we support him with a due regard to our own 
self-respect ? 

General Harrison's merits have been less known and appre- 
ciated in this part of the country than they deserve. The 
scenes of his services have been in distant regions, and the 
sentiments generally prevalent here during the last war, caused 
us to look with less interest to the frontiers than to the ocean. 
Our enthusiasm was reserved almost exclusively for the achiev- 
ments of the navy. Since his name has been brought forward 
in connection with the Presidency, both in 1836 and more re- 
cently, we have had our more favorite candidates Webster and 
Clay, with whom we were unwilling to hear of any competi- 
tor ; and the unfounded attacks made upon General Harrison 
by his adversaries, their derrogating epithets and unmerited 
sneers, have remained unanswered and unrepelled. It is time 
that the public mind was disabused. 

Our opponents have objected that his qualifications are 
merely those of a military commander. With what truth 
this allegation is made a very brief review of his civil career 
will show. 

At the early age of twenty-four, he was appointed Secretary 
of the North Western Territory and ex officio Lieutenant Gov- 
ernor, the second civil office in that government comprising what 
now constitutes the States of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan 
and Missouri. In this station he served with such acceptance 
that two years afterwards, by the voice of the people, he was 
elected their Delegate to the Congress of the United States. 
In that body he so distinguished himself that in a short time, 
upon the erection of Ohio into a State, and while yet under 
the age of thirty years, he was selected by the elder Adams, 
then President of the United States, to be Governor of the 
Indiana Territory, comprising what now constitutes the States 
of Indiana, Illinois, Michigan and Missouri. This important 
station he held about thirteen years, and united with it was that 
difficult and responsible office of Superintendent of Indian Af- 
fairs. To judge of the requisites for the successful execution of 
those trusts, we must carry our minds back to that early period, 



when a great portion of that Territory was covered by hordes 
of hostile savages ; when a new population of the most bold, 
restless and adventurous spirits, not only from all parts of our 
own country but from Europe, was rushing into those fertile re- 
gions, impatient of restraint and with every variety of views, 
habits and pursuits. To govern successfully required a rare 
union of prudence and energy, mildness and firmness, sagacity 
and industry ; it demanded far higher talents than are requisite 
at the present day to be Governor of any State in the Union. 

In these offices, and as Commissioner to treat with the Indians, 
he was called upon to disburse vast sums of public money, and 
had much concernment with the public lands. That he dis- 
charged these high and difficult duties to the entire satisfaction 
of the Government of the United States, is attested by his suc- 
cessive re-appointment to the same stations by Presidents 
Jefferson and Madison. But how was it with the People over 
whom he presided ? Was it possible for him at the same time 
to secure their approval, — to unite the approbation of the 
Executive of the United States, with that of the People he was 
sent to govern ? In answer to this question, permit me to read 
to you a resolution passed unanimously by the House of Rep- 
resentatives of the Territory of Indiana, in the year 1809. 

" They (the House of Pi.epresentatives) cannot forbear re- 
commending to, and requesting of, the President and Senate, 
most earnestly in their own names, and in the names of their 
constituents, the re-appointment of their present governor, 
William Henry Harrisoh, — because he possesses the good wishes 
and affection of a great majority of his fellow-citizens ; because 
they believe him sincerely attached to the Union, the prosperity 
of the United States, and the administration of ks government ; 
because they believed him in a superior degi-ee capable of pro- 
moting the interest of our territory, from long experience and 
laborious attention to its concerns, from his influence over the 
Indians, and wise and disinterested management of that de- 
partment ; and because they have confidence in his virtues, 
talents and repuhlicanisin.''^ 

This resolution needs no comment. It is the unanimous and 



8 

cordial testimony of those who had the best possible means of 
judging, to his ability, wisdom, disinterestedness and patriotism. 

He subsequently established his residence in Ohio and be- 
came a member of the Senate of that State, — was chosen by 
the People their Representative to Congress, and afterwards 
elected a member of the Senate of the United States. 

In these stations he was brought into close and intimate rela- 
tions with the then administration of John Quincy Adams, by 
whom, with the approbation of his Cabinet and the Senate, 
General Harrison was appointed Minister from the United 
States to the Republic of Colombia. And when was John 
Quincy Adams ever accused, even by his worst enemies, of 
appointing incompetent men to office ? Himself possessing 
the highest order of talents, it was with him matter of pride as 
well as of duty to employ men of distinguished ability ; and 
if ther-e was any one department of the public service about 
which he was more solicitous than any other, it was that of our 
foreign diplomacy, in which he had himself been so long and 
so eminently distinguished. Mr. Clay was then Secretary of 
State, and, as such, had the more immediate charge of our 
foreign relations. His heart had been wrapped up in the suc- 
cess of South American liberty. He had anxiously wished to 
see established in this hemisphere a new association of sister 
Republics. Yet, by such men as Adams and Clay was General 
Harrison selected to represent the United States in South 
America, then in a state of revolution, where he would have to 
act in all the emergencies which revolution might produce, and 
act too promptly upon his own judgment and his own resources. 
Of the manner in which he discharged this high duty, I shall 
speak hereafter. 

I pass now to his military career. 

After receiving a literary education at one of our Southern 
seminaries, the Indian wars, which then raged upon our Wes- 
tern border, aroused his active spirit and he entered the army 
as an Ensign of artillery, at the early age of eighteen years, 
soon after the disastrous defeat of St. Clair. 

He was early promoted to a Lieutenancy and selected by 
that gallant general of the Revolution, Anthony Wayne, to be 



one of his Aids-de-Camp. In this capacity he served in sev- 
eral campaigns and fought in the desperate battle of the Miami. 
Gen. Wayne, in his public despatches, spoke of Harrison's 
services in terms of decided approbation. At the age of 
twenty-four he left the army and entered upon civil employ- 
ment as I have before stated. 

It was not until the year 1811, and then as Governor of 
Indiana, that he was called upon to resume the sword. An 
Indian war having broken out he assembled a body of militia 
and volunteers with which and 350 regular troops he fought 
the celebrated and important battle of Tippecanoe. The 
President of the United States thought this event worthy to 
be noticed by a message to Congress in which he speaks of 
the conduct of General Harrison in honorable terms of deserved 
commendation. A corps of Kentucky militia was in the battle. 
How his conduct was appreciated by them and others most 
competent to decide may be seen by the following resolution 
passed by the Legislature of Kentucky. 

"Resolved, That in the late campaign against the Indians 
on the Wabash, Governor W. H. Harrison has, in the opinion 
of this legislature, behaved like a hero, a patriot, and a general ; 
and that for his cool, deliberate, skilful, and gallant conduct, in 
the late battle of Tippecanoe, he deserves the warmest thanks 
of the nation." 

But what, to my mind, is stronger evidence still of the high es- 
timation in which he was held is the extraordinary fact that after 
the declaration of the war of 1812, General Harrison, then a 
citizen of another State, was by the Commonwealth of Ken- 
tucky made a Major General in her militia in order that he 
might command all the troops she was then raising for actual 
service. Thus did that gallant State pre-eminent for chival- 
ous daring and justly proud of her achievments in arms, sac- 
rifice her State pride and supersede her own high officers solely 
from a conviction of Harrison's great superiority. 

In the autumn of 1812, he was appointed by the govern- 
ment of the United States Commander in Chief of the North 
Western Army. Of the confidence reposed in his ability and 
patriotism, some judgment may be formed by the unlimited 



10 

discretion with which he was invested. The letter of tlie Sec- 
retary of War which enclosed his commission, said to him, 
*' You will command such means as may be practicable — exer- 
cise your own discretion, and act in all cases according to your 
own judgment." 

In this command he achieved the gallant defence of Fort 
Meigs, which Avas invested with a formidable force by the 
British General Proctor and his savage allies, confident of suc- 
cess. Harrison, by bold and successful sorties, executed under 
his orders, drove them from their batteries, and finally compel- 
led them to retreat. He afterwards followed them to Maiden 
which had been their strong hold, but which they now aban- 
doned, and continued his progress till he overtook them near 
the river Tliames. General Proctor selected his own ground, 
a strong position having the river on his left and a swamp on 
his right. But Harrison, by a bold and judicious movement, 
broke through his centre, attacked him in rear and front, and 
in a brief space of time, captured nearly the whole British 
force with several brass pieces, the trophies of our revolution, 
which General Hull had ingloriously surrendered at Detroit. 
The victory was brilliant and decisive. 

This was the celebrated Battle or the Thames, which 
secured to General Harrison the gratitude of the public, for 
which Congress presented to him a vote of thanks, and which 
an eminent statesman, Langdon Cheves, formerly Speaker of 
the House of Representatives, declared on the floor of Con- 
gress, " would have secured to a Roman General, in the best 
days of the Republic, the honors of a triumph.'' 

General Harrison had been called, by his country, to military 
command because formidable enemies were in the field, and a 
great emergency required his services. When the exigency 
had ceased, unwilling to eat the bread of idleness, he resigned 
his commission and returned to civil pursuits. Such is the man 
to whom it is objected that he has been a military commander 
— who drew his sword only when the necessities of his country 
required it, and sheathed it again the moment that that neces- 
sity had passed away. 

His military career may well be relied upon as evidence, — 



II 

evidence of his patriotism and his talents. To be an able 
military Chief, undoubtedly requires intellect of a high order. I 
speak not of subordinates who have only to execute com- 
mands, but of him who plans and carries on a campaign and 
guides and controls the movements of battles. This requires 
an almost intuitive sagacity, great powers of combination, with 
prudence, caution, promptness and energy, combined with per- 
fect self-reliance and self-control. It eminently requires those 
practical talents which act upon men and things as they exist. 
This is an intellectual power which however evinced, may be 
applied with success to the pursuits of peace as well as of war ; 
and history and observation concur in teaching us that when 
distinguished military commanders have become- civil rulers they 
have been eminent for their ability as statesmen. They have 
sometimes indeed continued their habits of military dominion 
and been high handed and arbitrary ; but against this the integ- 
rity and civil experience of General Harrison, and his invari- 
able submission to the laws, are an efiectual guaranty. His 
sentiments and the principles which guide his conduct, are 
happily exhibited in his celebrated letter to General Bolivar, 
written while Minister at Colombia. The whole is far too 
long for the present occasion, but with your permission I will 
present the following extract. 

" To bo esteemed eminently great, it is necessary to be 
eminently good. The qualities of the hero and the general 
must be devoted to the advantage of mankind, before he will 
be permitted to assume the title of their benefactor ; and the 
station which he will hold in their regard and affections will 
depend, not upon the number and splendor of his victoiies, 
but upon the results and the use he may make of the influence 
he acquires from them. 

" If the fame of our Washington depended upon his mihtary 
achievements would the common consent of the world allow 
him the pre-eminence he possesses ? The victories at Trenton, 
Monmouth and York, brilliant as they were, exhibiting as they 
certainly did the highest grade of military talents, are scarcely 
thought of. The source of the veneration and esteem which 
is entertained for his character, by every description of poll- 



12 

ttcians, the monarchist and aristocrat, as well as the republican, 
is to be found in his undeviating and exclusive devotedness to 
the interest of his country. No selfish consideration was ever 
suffered to intrude itself into his mind. For his country he 
conquered ; and the unrivalled and increasing prosperity of 
that country is constantly adding fresh glory to his name." 

TJiis letter was addressed by Harrison to General Bolivar, 
the chief of the Republic of Colombia, immediately after his 
arrival in that country, and scarcely had he time to perform 
this service before he was recalled by President Jackson pur- 
suant to that unsparing system of removals which characterised 
his administration. He returned to his country and his home — 
j)oor. Yes the man who had served thus long and thus faith- 
fully — who as Governor of Indiana, Superintendant of Indian 
affairs and Commissioner had had millions of the public money 
pass through his hands and millions of public property under 
his control, retired from office so poor that he was under the 
necessity of engaging in some employment however humble 
that might enable him to support his family. He could not 
change his politics and become subservient to power. He 
could not abandon his principles for the sake of patronage, but 
chose rather to accept the laborious station of clerk of the 
Courts in his own State. And for this, the fruits and the proof 
of his Honesty, he has been sneered at by those who are in- 
capable of following his example. No wonder that the office 
holders of the present day are incapable of appreciating such 
merits. Had he possessed any portion of that laxity of princi- 
ple which now, alas, is too prevalent, had it not been for his 
scrupulous, unyielding integrity he might easily, by means of 
of the vast amounts of public money which he has heretofore 
disbursed and public property which has been subject to his 
control have amassed a princely fortune and been now rolling 
in wealth. Instead of which, having resigned his clerkship, he 
has now no resource but the plough, he depends for his sup- 
port upon what he can obtain from the surface of the earth by 
the cultivation of his farm. 

Of his integrity no one, even of his opponents, utters a 
whisper of suspicion. The whole course of his life, and the 



13 

confidence reposed in him by those who know him best, dem- 
onstrate that he is pre-eminently an honest man. And here 
let me remark that of all qualities in a public man, integrity, — 
integrity is the first. With this in your public rulers, com- 
bined with prudence and that homely quality — strong common- 
sense, — you cannot be in great danger ; without it, you can 
never be safe. Honest errors may be corrected, corruption will 
soon become fatal. 

Such is the candidate now oftered for your support. He has 
been selected — not for his sake, but for yours, for the country. 
In a Monarchy one man is every thing and the People are 
nothing ; in a Republic the People are every thing and one man 
is nothing. Your happiness and prosperity, aye, the happiness 
and prosperity of each one of you is more important than the 
gratification of any individual by elevating him to office. 

You need an instrument to arrest the career of this Adminis- 
tration, by whom the prosperity of our country has been struck 
down and its political morals debased. Look back for a few 
years when we were enjoying the fruits of Mr. Adams's Admin- 
istration — the national finances superabundant — every depart- 
men of private industry successful — the sun in his circuit shone 
not upon a more prosperous people. How has it been since ? 
We have been at peace with all nations, the seasons have been 
propitious and the earth has rendered its fruits in abundance. 
The Government of the Universe has been wise and merciful, 
but the government of our country has been that of folly and 
cruelty. The Executive in its reckless attacks upon the cur- 
rency has resorted to experiment after experiment, — convulsion 
has followed convulsion, — public and private credit has been 
prostrated, and bankruptcy and ruin overwhelmed thousands 
and tens of thousands of our most industrious and enterprising 
citizens. The slow accumulation of years was swept away in 
a moment. With men of business every thing was fluctuating 
and unstable. Sagacity itself was at fault and industry and 
economy were rendered useless. Who among you has not seen 
dear and valued friends and neighbors fall to rise no more, be- 
neath this wide-spread and overwhelming calamity? And 
when, more than two years since, the cries of distress were so 



14 

loud that they penetrated even the marble walls of the White 
House at Washington and startled the President into the call 
of an extra session of Congress, and the whole country were 
awaiting with anxious expectation a message that should pro- 
pose some measure of permanent relief, — how was that expec- 
tation answered ? By a declaration that the credit, the com- 
merce, the industry of the country, so far as they depend upon 
the currency, were to receive no aid or relief from the National 
Councils ; that the Government would only take care of itself. 
And who is the Government 1 General Jackson could say, I 
am the Government, and now I suppose the office-holders may 
say we are the Government ; and they, the servants of the peo- 
ple, are only to take care of themselves ! Yes, after by the 
Constitution the several States have divested themselves of im- 
portant powers, in the great matters of currency and finance, 
and vested them in the General Government in the confidence 
that they would be exercised for the general good, this Admin- 
istration declares that they are not to be exerted for the benefit 
of the people, and that the Government is only to take care of 

itself! 

I have said that they have debased political morals. Is 
it not so ? It was proclaimed in the Senate of the United 
States by a distinguished leader, the late Governor of New 
York, brought up, not indeed at the feet of Gamaliel, but at 
the feet of Mr. Van Buren, — that the " Spoils belong to the 
Victors," — that the public offices and emoluments created by 
people and for the people are to be the objects of pillage by 
the conquerors in our civil contests. And how has this senti- 
ment been carried out in practice ? How have they used the 
public officers and public monies upon which they have seized 
I will not go into detail, but refer you to the present condition 
of our national finances, and that melancholy roll of defalca- 
tions wiiich darkens the present page of our history. 

They declaimed against Mr. Adams's administration as ex- 
travagant because it expended some twelve millions of dollars 
a year for the public benefit. They have had more than double 
that amount and what have they done with it ? What public 
works have they erected ? What internal in)provements have 



i> 



15 

they carried forward ? What branches of national industry 
have they in any manner fostered ? But I forbear. You need 
no remarks from me to convince you that, as we love our 
country, as we woukl preserve our free institutions, we must 
struo-ale to arrest the downward course of our national admin- 
istration. And to do this, we must be united — cordially united. 
Our enemies have rested their hopes upon our divisions ; they 
have flattered themselves tiiat the opposition was composed of 
such discordant materials that they could never be brought to 
concentrate action. They have relied upon our efforts being 
paralized by our predilections for men. But the harmony and 
enthusiasm of the closing scenes at Harrisburg must despel 
their hopes. Union, — Union must be our watch-word. 

When this metropolis was in possession of British myrmi- 
dons, our Fathers, for the sake of combining the whole country 
sacrificed their preference for their own favorite. Gen. Ward, 
and cordially rallied under a Commander who was scarcely 
known to them except as a land surveyor in Virginia and an 
Indian fighter on its boarders, — and the oppressor was driven 
from our shores. Let us emulate their example and now cor- 
dially unite in one determined effort to drive the spoilers from 
the capital. 

In concluding, I will present to you not figures, of rhetoric, 
but figures of arithmetic. Let us look at our prospect of suc- 
cess. The calculation wiiich I am about to present is founded 
upon information obtained at Harrisburg, by my colleagues and 
myself. We sought it from the best sources and the most au- 
thentic form in our power. It is derived from gentlemen of 
the highest respectability, from the various sections of our 
country, and on their authority it rests. Let us see what for- 
ces we can muster in the coming contest ? 

In the first place we will set aside as a reserve corps certain 
States which we will class as doubt fid. And, notwithstanding 
the high hopes which we may indulge of the Key-stone State 
from the assurances we have received, we will place her at the 
head. 



16 



Pennsylvania, 
Add Louisiana, 
Tennessee, 
North Carolina, 



30 electors 

5 
15 
15 



65 

We will then bring into action as forces to be relied upon. 



The Empire State, with her 
Connecticut, _ _ - - 
Rhode Island, - - - - 
Illinois, _ _ _ _ 
Michigan, _ _ _ - 
Add those States that gave their vote for Harri- 
son in 1836, and we are assured will do so again, 
viz: 

Ohio, - - 

Indiana, _ _ - - 

Kentucky, _ _ - - 

Maryland, _ _ - - 

New Jersey, 

Delaware, _ - - - 

Vermont, - _ - 



42 electors 
8 
4 
5 
3 



21 

9 

15 

10 

8 
4 

7 

136 votes. 
One hundred and forty-seven will elect your President. 
Twelve more are wanting. Old Massachusetts gives fourteen. 
What say you shall we add these to the number and secure a 
victory ? (Yes was the unanimous and deafening response.) 
Theii fellow-citizens you may give three cheers — not for a man 
— but for Union and the Country. 



Making an aggregate of 



p 



MEETING AT FANEUIL HALL. 



[From the Boston Ailas.'\ 

One of the largest and most enthusiastic meetings that ever assembled at tlie 

old Cradle of Liberty, convened on the Evening of the 13th December, agreeably to 

the invitation of the County Convention, to hear the report of the Delegation to Har- 

risburg, from this district. The meeting was called to order by our Mayor elect, 

Jonathan Chapman, Esq., who briefly stated the object of their assembling. 

Robert C. Winthrop, Esq., was then placed in the chair. 

Nathan Hale, Esq., ) „„ . 

AT II T^ J' 01 Boston, 

Nathaniel. Hammond, Esq., ^ > 

David A. Simmons, Esq., of Roxbury, 
Elijah Vose, Esq., of Dorchester, 
GiLMAN Stanley, Esq., of Charlestown, and 
Isaac Livermore, Esq., of Cambridge, 
were appointed Vice Presidents, and 

William Brigham, Esq., ") 
William T. Eustis, Esq., ! „ , . 

oseph 1. Adams, Esq., [ 
Nathaniel Seaver,Esq., J 
Mr. Winthrop in taking the Chair, said that he would undertake to say but 
a few words, in order to break the ice for those that were to succeed him. He 
would congratulate his fellow citizens, not merely of Boston, but throughout the 
country, upon the glorious object for which they were assembled. They had met 
together, not in honor of the triumph of one man — not in the spirit of exultation at 
the success of a favorite — or the defeat of his rivals. He was sure not a man in 
the hall would so belie that noble sentiment of their illustrious delegate, who was 
about to address them, "that he was no man's man." 

A meeting for such a purpose would be unworthy of Faneuil Hall, and would 
be an object for condolence rather than for congratulation. Although not their first 
choice, he was sure none but the kindest feelings were entertained for General 
William Henry Harrison, as had been shown at the last Presidential election, 
when the vote of .Massachusetts would have been given him, in case it could have 
secured his success. Mr. Winthrop then alluded to General Harrison's high 
merits, and his eminent qualifications for the olfice, as shown by his long life of 
civil, as well as military services. It had been objected that he was a mili- 
tary hero, and his enemies professed to feel a horror at the thought. He would 
ask whether the fact that General Harrison had drawn his sword in defence of his 
country, was a reason v^^v his high civil services should be overlooked. He was 
as wholly opposed as a ne could be to rest his claims merely on his military 
renown, but he could se. o reason why these merits should prevent him from 
having his other claims du y appreciated. 

^ He concluded with an eloquent exhortation now to make the first act of conces- 
sion. Every thing depended now on concession and organization. Who did not 
rejoice that the bugle note had been sounded to assemble and rally the Whig 
forces, that they might now present an unbroken front, instead of carrying on a 
desultory warfare, and meeting with certain defeat? The Whigs were now unit- 
ed, and their victory was certain. He would make way for Hon. Peleg 
Sprague, the delegate to Harrisburg, ficm Boston. 
3 



18 

Mr. Sprague stated that the Harrisburg Convention had unanimously nominated 
William Henry Harrison, of Ohio. He had gone to the Convention the political 
and personal friend of Henry Cby ; but he was now convinced that that body had 
taken the wisest course. He proceeded, in a calm and dispassionate, but eloquent 
and convincing manner, to explain why it had been deemed advisable to nominate 
General Harrison. 

Mr. Sprague's address was throughout listened to with a most complete and re- 
spectful attention ; and although addressed, as he said himself, rather to their un- 
derstanding than to excite their enthusiasm, yet the mere narration of the fact3 
which he adduced, and the reasons which he brought forward, produced an irre- 
pressible enthusiasm, which made Old Faneuil Hall re-echo with their shouts of 
approbation. Mr. Sprague outdid himself, and no one that heard him could fail 
of being proud in having been represented by such a Delegate. 

After Mr. Sprague had concluded, Elbridge G. Austin, Esq. offered a 
series of resolutions, which will be found below, which he prefaced with a few 
brief words. After they had been read, loud calls were made from all parts of the 
hall, for General ^VlLsoN, of New Hampshire. Mr. Wilson apologised for 
having gone to the Convention from such a State as New Hampshire, and alluded, 
in a very happy manner, to the overshadowing of their liberties by one of their 
Hills, notwithstanding its smallness. He wished that all could have witnessed the 
closing scenes of the Harrisburg Convention, and seen the noble manner in which 
the delegates from Kentucky, particularly Governor Metcalfe, h;'.d responded to 
the nomination. He had now, he continued, hopes even of New Hampshire. There 
were those there who had served under General Harrison, who would not fail to 
kindle the fires of liberty to such a degree, that it would sweep, like a prairie fire, 
all tbe brush and stubble which the present administration had spread over the 
land. 

He concluded by thanking his audience for the complimentary manner in which 
he had now, for the third time, been received. He would assure them that so 
long as liis muscles sufficed to keep his bones together, so long would he continue 
devoted to the Whig cause. He was kept, he was aware, without the pale of 
political honor in his State, but the price of admittance, being his honor and 
honesty, was too high for him to piy. ftlr. Wilson's remarks were all excellent, 
and were received with approbation. 

He was followed by Hon. Samuel Hoar, of Concord, Delegate from the 
JMiddlesex district. ]\Ir. Hoar said that he appeared merely as a witness to con- 
firm the statement of iMr. Sprague. He had gone to Harrisburg with his own 
mind made up in favor of Mr. VAny. He had been induced to change his views 
from the conviction that by adhering to such a course, he would be but endanger- 
ing the success of the cause we all had at heart. He was convinced that General 
Harrison could be elected if the Whigs would now but unite and join heart 
and hand in his support, Mr. Hoar's observations were excellent throughout, and 
from the calm, deliberate manner in which tiiey were delivered, must have car- 
ried conviction to every mind. 

He was followed by Mr. Burn ell, of Nantucket, one of the Delegates at 
large. Mr. B. said he had been one of the firm supporters of the claims of Gene- 
ral Harrison ; not on account of the man — not in behalf of the individual, but for 
the sake of his country. The Whigs must now be true to themselves. They had 
a candidate whose character, like the diamond from the mine, would only shine 
the more brilliantly the more it was handled. He proceeded in a most eloquent 
and convincing manner to set forth General Harrison's high individual claims upon 
our gratitude and veneration, and stated that, as he had heard another individual 
say, the only reason why General Harrison had not been regarded great was that 
he was so good. He would, in conclusion, invoke the aid of Heaven in behalf of 
our cause — the cause of the people. 

IMr. Vose, of Alaine, addressed the meeting in a peculiarly happy manner. 
He spoke of the noble character of the district from which he had the honor 
to be Delegate — a district which had once been that of the "no man's man." 
He called upon the Whigs, one and all, now to carry the war into the enemy's 
camp — to test this modern democracy, and to show to the world that it was in 



19 

reality but the support of executive power. The "Whigs were now to go forth to 
battle, and he felt assured they would conquer. 

Mr. Hough, of Gloucester, said it was too late to make a speech, especially 
as he was to make one at length to his constituents the next night. He would 
state however, that although he had voted throughout in the Convention for another, 
he concurred most heartily in their nomination, and was now convinced that their 
choice was better than his own. The remarks of the delegate from Essex made 
up for their brevity in their excellence and pith. He concluded, by saying that 
the Whigs would now, with the votes of the electoral college in their hands, 
march up to the Wliite House at Washington, and demand its surrender in the 
name of the Great Jehovah and the American People. 

Mr. Lee, of Tenipleton, delegate from the Franklin district, merely rose to 
corroborate the statement of those who had preceded him. Ho was satisfied that 
the nomination was the best that could have been made, and that it would be at- 
tended with success. 

Mr. Hudson, of Westminster, delegate from the Worcester district, would 
merely say a word. He concurred, most fully and cordially, in the statements 
which had been made, and was most happy in witnessing the enthusiasm with 
which they had been received. 

The resolutions were adopted by acclamation, and the meeting broke np after 
making Old Faneuil Hall ring with nine cheers for the Citizen Soldier. 

In short, we never witnessed, and we doubt whether the Old Cradle itself ever 
before witnessed, any thing like the enthusiasm which pervaded the meeting. 
But one feeling animated the whole — a conviction that the best selection of a can- 
didate had been made, and more than all, that the nomination would be sustained. 
The enthusiasm of the meeting at Faneuil Hall, last evening, is an omen of the 
unanimity and consequent success that is to attend the broad banner of the Consti- 
tution, now unfurled to the breeze. 

RESOLUTIONS. 

Resolved, By the Whigs of Boston and the vicinity, and others opposed to the 
administration of Martin Van Buren, in Faneuil Hall assembled, that we come to- 
gether with fresh zeal for our cause, with new hopes for our country, and with re- 
animated and re-invigorated determination to leave no honorable ellbrt unemploy- 
ed, to render that cause triumphant, and to rescue that country from existing op- 
pression and misrule, — now that the National Convention has held its long expect- 
ed session and the Presidential candidacy has been fairly and finally disposed of. 

Resolved, That we most heartily rejoice that the day for disputing about indi- 
vidual preferences, and for indulginn; in personal or sectional rivalries, is at last 
brought to an end, and that all the Whii;s of the LInion, and all others disposed to 
unite with them, in efiecting a change of our Js^ational Rtilers, can now go for- 
ward, with united hearts and hands, to the vindication of their common principles 
and to the support of a single candidate. 

Resolved, That our beloved country calls aloud, through all its interests and all 
its institutions, for such a change ; — that the Industry of the country demands 
relief from the ruinous policy which has so long fettered its energies and plundered 
its wages ; that the Commerce of the country claims a respite from the perni- 
cious measures which have so long embarrassed its course and deranged its circu- 
latmg medium ; — that the Credit of the country implores a reprieve from that 
sentence of annihilation, which is the great end and aim of the Sub Treasury 
system to enforce and execute ; that the Constitution of the country invokes pro- 
tection from those wanton violations and perversions which have already destroyed 
its balance of powers, already insparted such fearful preponderance to the Execu- 
tive scale, and which, if not speedily restrained, cannot fail to convert it into a 
charter of absolute despotism ; — and that finally, the people, the whole people of 
the country, are cniillcd to rest and repose from any further prosecution of those 
harrassing and oppressive experiments, to which they have been so long subjected 
by a band of canting, scheming, boasting, blundering, self-seeking office-holders. 

Resolved, That in such an exigency of our country and its afi'airs, we scorn to 



20 

inquire whether the candidate for the Presidency who has been selected by the 
Convention, was originally our /Irs/ or our last choice, — that we have entire con- 
fidence in the capacity, the honesty and the patriotism of 

WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON, OF OHIO ; 

That he has been tried alike in the forum and on the field, in the councils of peace 
and in the conduct of war, and never found wanting ; — and that we henceforth 
hail him as our only choice, and pledge to him our best exertions to render him 
the choice of the nation at the next election. 

Resolved, That in the rules which were long ago laid down by General Harrison 
for the guidance of his conduct in the event of his election to the Chief Ma<Tis- 
tracy of. the Union, in his resolution " to confine his service to a single term, to 
disclaim all right of control over the public treasure, to limit the exercise of the 
veto power, to abstain from attempting to influence elections by his official patron- 
age, and to leave the whole business of legislation to those departments to which 
the Constitution has assigned it," we recognize those sound democratic republican 
principles, which can alone restore the administration of our country to its original 
simplicity and purity. 

Resolved, That the pledges of unqualified assent and cordial support, tendered 
in advance to whatever nomination might be agreed upon, by the illustrious- 
statesman and the gallant soldier who were the other candidates of the Conven- 
tion, and subsequently renewed by their respective friends, entitle them to the 
respect, admiration and gratitude of every Whig in the Union. 

Resolved, That we cannot fail to remember in this connection also, the generous 
surrender of all claims of his own, which were made by our own distinguished 
Senator in his letter from London in June last, and that we rejoice in the assur- 
ance, that he will give his warm and hearty support, on his return, to the candi- 
date that has now been named. 

Resolved, That we approve of the selection of 

JOHN TYLER, OF VIRGINIA, 

as a candidate for the Vice Presidency, and will vote for him accordingly. 

Resolved, That we rejoice to observe in the closing scenes of the late National 
Convention, an omen and an earnest of that harmony, enthusiasm and energy, 
which need but to pervade and animate our ranks, to ensure a successful issue to 
our efforts, and that with " Union for the sake of the Union" as our motto, and 
Harrison and Tyler as our watchwords, we throw the broad banner of the 
Constitution once more to the breeze, and gather once more beneath its folds, 
determined that it shall not be owing to any desertion or dissention in the Old Bay 
State, if that banner fail, within another year, to float in triumph over the Capitol ! 

Resolved finally, That we can, we must, and we WILL TRIUMPH. 



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